British Airways rolls out Club Suite to Boeing 777 fleet
British Airways is continuing with the roll out of its newest business class seat, Club Suite, as it retrofits the seat across its Boeing 777 fleet, with the project expected to be completed by the end of 2022.
The airline already has retrofitted a number of its Boeing 777 aircraft with the latest seat and will be working with Collins Aerospace to ensure the rest of the airline’s 777 aircraft are fitted with the new cabin. Collins will also perform full-cabin integration work – including engineering design, test and approval – along with program management and third-party supplier approvals.
The airline’s sophisticated Club Suite was first rolled out in July 2019 on the first A350 and since then has been installed on the Boeing 787-10 aircraft. The Club Suite is a customised version of Collins Aerospace’s Super Diamond business class seat and offers direct-aisle access, a suite door for greater privacy and luxurious flat-bed seats in a 1-2-1 configuration. Boasting 40% more storage, including a vanity unit and mirror, Wi-Fi, 18.5-inch in-flight entertainment screens, high-definition gate-to-gate programming and PC/USB power, the Suite is similar to the upgraded cabin on British Airways’ new Airbus A350 fleet.
As part of its commitment to the North Atlantic, all British Airways flights to JFK from London Heathrow will be operated by an aircraft that has the airline’s Club Suite product.
Sajida Ismail, Head of Inflight Product at British Airways, said: “When we launched our Club Suite product, it was a huge hit with our customers who loved the privacy the new seat offers. We are focused on the roll out of this product and other cabin enhancements to ensure we deliver on our commitment to provide the very best British quality, style and comfort for our customers.”
Trevor Skelly, General Manager Integration Engineering for Collins Aerospace, commented: “The upgraded Club World cabin raises British Airways’ already high standards and provides commonality across their fleet of aircraft. Our Integration Engineering team has worked closely with British Airways designers for several years to bring the latest in business class comfort, style and privacy from concept to reality.”
As part of the upgrade, the airline’s Club Kitchen is also getting a makeover with new Club chillers and built-in storage for snacks, drinks and other refreshments, allowing customers in Club World to help themselves to refreshments at their leisure.
The latest generation of the First cabin including the introduction of the First suite door will also continue to be rolled out across the airline’s B777-300 aircraft. The First suites were meticulously designed based on our customers’ feedback, the cabin puts comfort at the heart of the experience and makes the very best use of the generous space designed for just a few customers at a time. The suite includes a fixed 23-inch high-definition in-flight entertainment screen that can be controlled with an integrated handset.
Manufacturing of the new suite seat is being completed at the company’s facility in Kilkeel, Northern Ireland, while the new Club Kitchen was designed at the company’s facility in Everett, Washington.
Alexander Preston www.inflight-online.com